3 Simple Ways to Help Bees

3 Simple Ways to Help Bees

Bees pollinate a third of everything we eat. That fact alone should be enough to warrant our attention. This includes important staples like most fruits and vegetables, coffee, tea, and cocoa beans. Even grass-fed and pastured meat production relies on bees and other pollinators, because bees and other insects pollinate the clover fields they graze on.  And as an important contributor to the global economy, annual global crop pollination by bees is estimated to be worth $170 billion.

But most importantly, bees are an integral part of the ecosystem. Not just the honey bees, but the endangered wild bee species, too. Bees you’ve probably never even heard of.  Incredible losses in native bee diversity is occurring, four North American bumblebee species declined 96% according to Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), and three species are believed to be extinct.

We recently asked Carly Stein of Beekeeper’s Naturals to give us a a few simple ways to help bees— something each and every one of us can do whether we live in an apartment, a house, a condo, in the city, or in the country— because declining bee population is something that concerns us all.

3 Simple Ways to Help Bees

1. Avoid pesticides as these can harm bees. Eating organic can support farmers that don’t use pesticides and NEVER use pesticides on your lawn or garden. 

2. Plant something. Even if you live in an apartment or condo, a potted balcony garden is a great way to start. Bees love colorful flowers and make sure you plant plants that are native to your area. Bees will thank you by pollinating your fruits and veggies and giving you an awesome garden!

3. Build a bee bath. Bees get thirsty too! 

3-simple-ways-to-help-the-bees-bee-bath

Building the Bee Bath

Before building a bee bath, you will want to consider building one that is designed for various kinds of bees and pollinators, so that each can perch on to drink fresh water while they are doing one of the most important jobs in the world! Not just any bird bath will work, because usually there’s nothing for them to safely perch upon, they need bee-sized, mini-island, landing pads!

  • Line a bowl with stones
  • Add water but don’t cover the stones with water. 
  • Place the bath at ground level in your garden, or nearby flowers. 
  • Replenish the bowl daily (ensuring that the mini-island landing pads stay dry)

Bonus! If you have an aphid problem, place bee baths next to infested plants. It should clear up very soon.

 

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